Unexpected Expectancy
by Shasta627
Summary: Isabel knows all the signs. She's seen her sister go through the process three times now. But she's still adjusting to life as a married woman - how is she going to handle becoming a mother on top of it all? [Pregnancy fic. One-shot. Older Isabel x Gabe.]


_**A/N: This was inspired by a discussion I had with  lovelyrugbee over on Tumblr about our headcannons for future Gababel children, and I just had to write this one out ;) Read and enjoy! xoxo**_

* * *

The first wave of nausea hit before Isabel had even opened her eyes.

Her head was spinning the moment she sat up, and as soon as her feet hit the ground it was a race to the bathroom before her stomach decided to empty the contents of last night's supper out onto the floor. She reached the edge of the bathtub just in time to avoid having to clean up another revolting mess, unlike the first time this had happened.

Once her stomach had stopped flipping and trying to jump out of her throat, Isabel lifted a shaky hand to wipe her mouth, leaning back on the floor and resting her head against the cool wall.

She'd been getting sick like this for nearly a week now. At first she thought it was just a stomach bug, maybe food poisoning at the most, but other than the occasional dizziness, fatigue, and strange aversion to the smell of cheese, she was completely normal.

Well, except for the vomiting almost every morning.

Isabel squeezed her eyes closed and tried to take a deep breath. Her stomach started turning again, but this time it wasn't from the nausea. She knew the symptoms all too well, having read so much about them plus watching her sister go through it three times. The dizziness, tiredness, queasiness, late cycle, aching skin… Isabel had it all.

She took another deep breath. _In through the nose, out through the mouth,_ she recited to herself, trying to calm her internal turmoil at the inevitable truth of what she was experiencing.

She tried to convince herself that she wasn't pregnant. She _couldn't _be pregnant. She wasn't ready to have kids yet. She and Gabe had only been married for one month, and had been taking precautions against this very thing. How could this happen? _Why_ was this happening? And to her, of all people?

Isabel furiously blinked her eyes, turning her gaze towards the ceiling as her hand subconsciously rested on her flat stomach. It wasn't that she didn't want kids, but there were so many things going on in her life, she didn't know if she could handle the responsibility of being a mother on top of it all.

Or if she would even _be_ a good mother.

A small sob escaped Isabel's lips and the tears came soon after, painting her cheeks with wet streaks. She pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around herself, all her fears of being a parent finally bubbling up and spilling over the edge.

Ask her about the inverse function of the quadratic formula or the angle of the sun during the summer solstice and she could formulate the answer in a heartbeat. But when it came to raising kids? She could read every book on parenting ever written but still not know a clue about how to be a mother. It wasn't a skill she could study; it wasn't a problem she could solve with a little science, math, and ingenuity—and it truly terrified her.

And what would Gabe think?

The thought brought on a whole new onslaught of worries. It was always right after he left for his Captain of the Guard duties that she ended up getting sick, so he still had no clue about her predicament. Would he be disappointed? Happy? They had both agreed on having kids someday, but what was he going to think about having them so soon?

_Stop worrying, this is ridiculous_! Isabel mentally berated herself, hating at how pitiful and selfish she was acting, but the thought of her pathetic behavior only distressed her more, and she couldn't help but cry harder.

Her emotional breakdown lasted for only a minute before she heard the door to the bedroom open, and then it was only a matter of seconds before Gabe rushed into the bathroom, his expression panicked.

"Isa!" he exclaimed in concern, dropping to the floor beside her. "Isa what's wrong? Are you hurt? What happened?" He ran his hands over her, as though checking for wounds before he noticed the vomit still in the bathtub. "Oh, _cariña_, are you sick?"

Isabel shook her head no, then nodded, then shook her head again. She swiped furiously at her tears and tried to compose herself. "I'm—I'm fine," she lied. She wasn't expecting him to find her like this, and wasn't sure if she was ready to tell him. She was still having trouble accepting it all herself.

But of course Gabe could tell something was off with her. He gently tucked her hair behind her ears and brushed away a few remnant tears. "Isa, what's wrong?" His voice still contained a hint of panic. "How sick are you?"

Isabel's stomach was turning with uncertainty. She had to tell him eventually, but was now the time? She evaded the question by asking him one instead. "What're you doing back here? I thought you left for work."

"I did, but then forgot I was taking some new recruits out on horseback today and came back to our room to get my riding boots and heard you crying. Now Isa, please, what's wrong? Do I need to call a doctor?" He stood up as though he was going to run off and do just that.

Isabel quickly got to her feet and shook her head furiously, which then brought on another wave of nausea. She fell back onto the ground and threw up into the bathtub again, Gabe holding back her hair and gently rubbing her back the whole time. When she was done she greatly accepted the clean towel he gave her to wipe her face, and then before she could think she blurted out, "I'm pregnant."

Both of them froze at her words. Isa bit her lip as she watched his face morph from confusion to pure shock.

"For—for real?" He finally managed to say, his eyes as wide as saucers. "You're, you're…" he trailed off as his eyes landed on her stomach, as though he'd be able to see a baby bump already.

"Yes," Isabel confirmed, and then burst into tears again.

Gabe looked thoroughly alarmed at her reaction, but gently took her by the arm and led her out of the bathroom and to the edge of their bed. "Hey, hey, what's wrong? Isa, this is…._amazing_! Why are you upset?"

"Because we're not ready!" she tried to explain, cursing her wayward emotions. "We had a plan! Wait two years then we'd have kids. And this—_this isn't going to plan_! It's sudden and unpredictable and, and…" Isabel swallowed and took a deep breath, trying to steady her voice. "Gabe...I'm scared. What if I'm a horrible mom?" she admitted, meeting his eyes and revealing to him her most vulnerable fear.

"Isabel…" Gabe began, his voice soft and reassuring. He stepped forward to completely envelope her in his strong, secure arms, and Isabel sank into the hug, burying her face in his chest and squeezing him as tight as she could. She felt him press a kiss onto her hair, and the deep rumble in his chest as he spoke comforted her. "It's natural to be scared, but don't think for a single moment that you're going to be a horrible mom."

"But I already am," she whispered, tears gathering in the corners of her eyes. "What kind of mother has an emotional breakdown at the realization that she's pregnant? I should be overjoyed, but I'm not because apparently all I can do is worry about myself!" she quietly sobbed, her voice muffled into Gabe's shirt. Though just saying the words and admitting to him her darkest thoughts offered her a bit of relief from the guilt that had been building up inside her all morning. She just hoped he wouldn't think too ill of her at her divulgence.

Gabe tightened his arms around her and began gently stroking her back. "_Mi cielito_, that doesn't make you a terrible mother—it makes you human," Gabe assured, slightly pulling away and tilting her chin up so she could look him in the eye. "It's natural to be scared, but just because you're concerned about yourself and the future doesn't mean you'll love our child any less."

He smiled widely, his eyes suddenly shining. "Our child," he repeated softly, cupping her face with his hands. "Our child, Isa, we're—we're going to be parents!"

His excitement was infectious, and Isabel felt some of her apprehensions slowly fade away.

"Yeah, we are," she quietly agreed. "But...what if something goes wrong with the pregnancy? What if I mess something up? What if—"

Her questions were cut off by Gabe's lips pressed against her own. When he finally drew away he gently caressed her cheek, his forehead still pressed against hers. "It's okay. I'm scared too," he told her. "But I promise, we're going to do this together. You won't be alone, _mi amada_. I'll be with you every step of the way." He was staring at her with such a tender, affectionate expression, Isabel couldn't help but blush.

"Okay," she said, more to reassure herself than to him, but he kissed her again anyway, an ardent kiss full of passion and happiness and excitement and every other unspoken emotion the two of them were experiencing.

"I love you," Gabe whispered once they parted, planting a soft kiss on her cheek. "I love you," he said again, kissing her nose this time. He proceeded to pepper kisses all across her face, and by the fifth 'I love you,' Isabel found herself grinning from ear to ear. Tears still coursed down her cheeks, but now they were from anticipation and happiness rather than just fear.

Gabe was right. She shouldn't worry so much. Sure, they were both scared and new to it all, but they would surely have help from Elena and everyone else to give them support.

They were in this together. Plan or no plan, as long as Gabe was by her side, she realized everything was going to be alright.

* * *

_8 Months Later…_

"Twins! _Twins_! Who would've thought?" Elena quietly exclaimed in amusement as she stood with Mateo by the doorway. Both of them were watching Gabe and Isabel with fond expressions, remembering exactly what it was like to be parents for the first time.

Gabe was curled up next to Isabel on the bed, one arm wrapped around her shoulders while the other cradled a small bundle of blankets to his chest. Isabel was holding a similar bundle as she leaned into her husband's embrace, both of them completely enraptured by their two new baby boys, Dante and Damian.

Mateo draped his arms around Elena from behind and rested his chin on top of her head, smiling at the happy couple. "If anyone can handle twins, it'll be them," he reassured her with confidence.

Elena watched as Gabe leaned over to press an affectionate kiss to Isabel's forehead, quietly whispering to her before they shared a teary smile, turning back to gaze at their newborns with looks of pure love and adoration.

"Yeah," she agreed, leaning back into Mateo's arms with a teary smile of her own. "They're going to be just fine."


End file.
